Winter Time Rendering

Chapter 169: Chapter 72: The Great Snow from Four Years Ago

Zhang Shutong wasn’t sure if he should ask. Perhaps it was best to let the matter stay buried.

He then recalled the man he’d met eight years later—the one in a suit, his hair combed impeccably. Their conversation had been too brief. Zhang Shutong had forgotten to ask him what happened to the Fox, if the Bulbasaur on the center console was still there, or whether he had ever gotten married.

’He’d probably gotten married, right? Maybe even had a kid who was almost eight by now. Otherwise, there was no way he would’ve looked so sharp.’

Zhang Shutong tactfully offered up a lyric. "Dedicate your youth to the glorious metropolis behind you?"

"Whoa, you know this song?" Song was stunned for a moment before smiling. "My youth is more than halfway over, though. Yours is just beginning. In the blink of an eye, you little rascals have all grown up. Do you even remember how tall you used to be?"

As he spoke, Song Nanshan gestured with his hand.

"Five-foot-seven, tops. About the same as Ruoping is now. Being able to watch you all grow up... how should I put it? Sometimes, I feel like my four years here have been well worth it."

Zhang Shutong read between the lines. "Sir, are you planning to leave after you’re done teaching our year?"

"Who knows what the future holds." This time, Song wasn’t speeding. He drove cautiously, his eyes fixed on the road ahead. "I’m the kind of person who can’t sit still. To be honest, I’ve felt pretty cooped up these past few years. If I have any dream, I guess it’s to get out and travel a bit."

"You’ve got some serious self-control, then," Zhang Shutong said with a laugh. "No wonder you’re always out driving around on the weekends."

"I just can’t sit still. And there isn’t much to do on this island. Oh, except for that temple on the mountain—the one Qinglian’s family runs. It barely counts as a tourist spot. I’ve gone to burn incense a few times and even ran into Qinglian. But, you know, it’s just so weird. Think about it: you’re a teacher, you go to the temple to offer incense, and it turns out the Temple Priestess is your own student. And she’s wearing this long robe! Oh, and you have to give some Incense Money, right? She’s the one who takes the money. It’s just... really weird."

Song was in full complaint mode.

’That’s not even the weird part,’ Zhang Shutong thought. ’Good thing technology isn’t that advanced yet. It’ll be truly weird in a few years when she just whips out a QR code for you to scan.’

Song tapped his fingers on the steering wheel out of boredom.

"What else is there to do? Qiumian’s family’s department store? I browse around there sometimes. It’s actually pretty nice. I recently discovered a deli counter in the supermarket there with really good food. I sometimes buy some to have with a drink at home. I’ll take you to try it sometime... Now that I mention it, I just remembered, her dad actually slipped me a few gift cards."

"Oh, a bribe." Zhang Shutong thought, ’You’ll be meeting the person from that deli counter soon enough.’

"Yeah, yeah." Song didn’t seem to mind. "But what am I supposed to do with these? I just buy a few gifts when I go home for the holidays, and that’s about it. What other expenses does a bachelor have? I guess I could get a color TV, but what’s the point? Just to have it as a decoration?"

It seemed Song had a lonely side to him.

Zhang Shutong could relate. It was just like his own situation back in the day. He had also earned money with nowhere to spend it. He didn’t need to worry about small expenses, and he didn’t have enough for any major ones, so he just kept saving. In the end, it had all been for nothing.

Zhang Shutong jokingly asked, "Then why did you come here in the first place? Were you just looking to make things hard for yourself?"

"To be honest, I never planned on teaching here. I originally just wanted to come and clear my head," Song Nanshan said casually. "Back then—four years ago—something happened. I was miserable cooped up in the city. As it happened, my ex-girlfriend was a local here, but believe it or not, I’d never once visited. Since there was nowhere else interesting to go nearby, I figured I might as well come check out the scenery. People say that seeing lakes and mountains can lift your spirits... and there’s definitely some truth to that."

Zhang Shutong froze at his words.

He gleaned two new pieces of information from this.

The first piece of information wasn’t exactly new, as he had already guessed it. The "something" that Song had mentioned was most likely his ex-girlfriend’s car accident. Shutong figured he hadn’t wanted to be surrounded by painful reminders and had simply moved to a different city.

The second piece, however, was quite surprising. It was the first he’d ever heard that Song Nanshan’s girlfriend was also from the island.

’So... he came to work in his late girlfriend’s hometown?’

’But why?’

’He’d assumed Song left the city to avoid being reminded of her, but wouldn’t this just bring him closer to those memories?’

’Or maybe... after his girlfriend passed away, only her elderly parents were left, and Song came here to take care of them?’

’Then why is he thinking of leaving now?’

Zhang Shutong didn’t really want to make him relive those painful memories, but he still found himself asking subconsciously:

"What about your girlfriend, sir?"

"Her? There was... an accident between us, and we were separated," the man said, his tone deliberately light. He ruffled Zhang Shutong’s hair. "Alright, don’t you worry about my problems. You should focus on..."

He’d been about to say, "...focus on wising up a bit yourself," but his expression suddenly turned odd. ’This kid seems to have gotten a clue today all on his own. Does he not need me to teach him anymore?’

And so, master and student sighed in unison, a faint melancholy passing through their hearts.

Song Nanshan sighed with regret; he had no one to impart his experience to.

Zhang Shutong, on the other hand, felt the timing wasn’t right. Since Song had made it clear he didn’t want to talk about his girlfriend, it wasn’t right to pry. Trying to trick him into talking about it was even more out of the question; he still remembered the lesson from the "cold-blooded route."

So he said lazily, "Well, sir, if you get lonely in the future, just come find us. My parents are hardly ever home anyway, and Ruoping and the others are always looking for someone to mooch a meal off of."

Song laughed. "So you only think of me when you want a free meal, is that it? What do you guys want to eat this week? My treat. We might as well invite Qiumian and Qinglian, too."

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